Inheritance, published after the death of its author Kath O’Connor at the age of 45, attracted much media attention earlier this year. Not just because February was Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month.
The novel itself is a triumph, described as “limpid, deeply empathetic”. It was praised as “a remarkable testament to life”, “a beautiful book”, and “an incredibly strong debut”.
O’Connor’s work was compared with Georgia Blain’s Between a Wolf and a Dog, as Blain, too, died from cancer while working on her manuscript. It reminds this reviewer of Andrew McGahan’s The Rich Man’s House and Kala Heinemann’s Pink Punk Mum – both were published posthumously, their authors taken by cancer.
What is it about death that casts such a shadow over our lives? It injects an icy fear into our hearts, a relentless warning that life should be lived to its fullest while there is still a chance. Think of the ghostly whisper from Dead Poets Society: “Carpe diem, seize the day. Gather ye rosebuds while ye may.”
On the eve of the first anniversary of the death of a beloved family member, this reviewer “reads” Inheritance as an audiobook narrated by Brigid Gallagher. It is a beautiful and thought-provoking encounter, thoroughly powerful and deeply immersive.
An impressive narrator, Gallagher brings the book’s many characters to life, starting with how Nellie’s husband does the “most perfect impression” of former prime minister John Curtin, “complete with the long pauses and the rolled R’s”: “I call on you to eat your rabbit and your vegetables… The call is national. The call is individual, for ‘no one else can do your share’.”
Gallagher does Nellie’s voice slightly higher-pitched, perfectly conveying the self-sense of a woman trying to manage family and farm life in 1945 regional Victoria after surrendering her higher education and plans for a brilliant career. Aware that she will soon die from cancer, there is a mixture of forlornness and melancholy in her voice that tugs at the listener’s heart. In contrast is the firm, thoughtful voice of her friend Ruth, a political activist who will profoundly shape the lives of Nellie and her descendants.
Then there is the calm, reflective voice of Rose in 2016, an oncologist searching for the origin of her BRCA1 gene mutation that, without a total hysterectomy and a bilateral mastectomy, will cause her early death from ovarian cancer. In contrast are the grumpy voice of Rose’s father and the strained voice of her motherhood-aspiring partner, two forces that threaten to pull her life apart.
As Nellie contemplates her impending death and its impact on her two young children, and as Rose considers her life’s options, we are further confronted by the important issue of human rights, including those of women and refugees. The narrator’s tender, empathetic voice elicits that little echo in our hearts, whispering: How would we choose if we were the characters in the book?
A gifted author voiced by a talented narrator, exactly the way the book should be heard. Highly recommended.
Note: This book review was originally titled “A tender and poignant novel” and published under the title “A review of Inheritance: A tender and poignant novel” by Ranges Trader Star Mail, August 29, 2023, P.14.
Voices under the Sun 陽光下的聲音 